Play with Me
by PitFTW
Summary: "Play with me?" "You're kidding me, right? C'mon, we gotta get you outta here! Have you seen the others?" "They wouldn't play with me, Link... they wouldn't play... they were so mean...I want you to play with me, Link... best friends forever..."
1. Chapter 1

Play With Me

**I. Static**

"Five minutes until it's time, Mister Gaiden!"

The first thing that came to his mind was that it was bright. Way too bright. He was pretty sure that Doug had decided to go all out with the lights again. As much as he liked the tall, rather beefy man, there were times when he wanted to take that helmeted head of his and ram it up against a convenient tree.

Luckily for him, there were none around.

He shielded his eyes. "Hey Doug, as much as I like being in the spotlight, mind turning it down? I think I'll go blind!"

The technician chuckled. "Link, we've been through this already. The reason I put so much light on you is…"

"So the girls can get a good look at my 'chiseled features'," Link sighed, rolling his eyes. "Yeah, I get that. But is the fan really necessary?"

"Of course, Sir Gaiden! Girls just love it when your hair blows in the wind like that! Makes you look like one of them Californian surfers!"

"I do believe he's lacking quite a bit when it comes to the 'Californian surfer' look, Doug," a voice tinkled from behind him. "Specifically the tan… and the bachelorhood."

Doug jumped. Impulsively, Link stuck one of his hands in his golden locks and started mussing them up, attempting to make them as messy as possible. His boss never approved of such behavior, but who was he to deny that keeping his hair gelled and perfectly _wasn't_ putting a strain on his manliness?

"Mrs. Gaiden!" Doug grinned, taking the young woman's hand and pressing his lips to it. "Lovely as ever!"

She awarded him with one of her winning smiles. "Douglas J. Falcon, you silver-tongued flatterer! Ah, if only my husband can work up the nerve to charm like you can." she now turned to her fellow news anchor. "And Link, stop doing that to your hair. I'm afraid it gives you more of the 'I just escaped from prison' look."

A muscle twitched in Link's jaw. "Well, excuuuuse me, prin-"

_WHAM!_

For a moment, the news anchor was stunned. A part of him vaguely wondered why his cheek stung so much. Before he could so much as ask, however, Zelda's cool fingers were already stroking his cheek. He let out a small moan and closed his eyes. It was extremely rare for him these days to be able to enjoy such close intimacy with the woman he loved.

Doug wolf-whistled. Link made a mental note to kill him later. But just as he was about to sink into pure bliss again, a new voice joined the group.

"Look. If you two _really_ want to start making out on national television, I'll just turn the camera on you right now," Ike drawled. The cameraman had just taken the lens cap off his machine and was busy reprogramming the zoom of the camera. "But seriously, we're on live in like two minutes and the last thing America wants to see is their news anchors sharing an 'intimate moment' on camera."

"Ten minutes until we're live, Mister Gaiden!" Marth shouted from next to Ike. Unlike Ike, who was large and muscular, Marth was thin and lithe. That wasn't to say, however, that he _didn't_ pack a pair of lungs.

"Ten min- wait a minute! You said ten minutes ten minutes ago!" Link accused. "You're not trying to pull one on us again, are you?"

If it was at all possible for a grown man to assume a look of innocence, Marth was doing so at that moment. "Messing with you? Ten minutes to go ten minutes ago? Why would I do that to _you_ of all people, Mister Gaiden?"

"… You're hiding something," Link said, straight-faced. "Just come out and say it. What is it this time? Am I going to get glued to my chair again? Is there caffeine in my decaf? Did you tepee my office?"

"No, no, and no," Marth said calmly. "And by the way, the office thing was all Ike."

"All me? Oh yeah, sure. Blame the big guy for the toilet paper in the office!"

"To be fair, you were the only one that could reach it," Doug pointed out. "And—"

"Oh yeah, I forgot," Marth said. "We're live in ten! Nine! Eight! Seven!"

Both Link and his wife scrambled into their respective chairs, shooting heavy glares at Marth as they passed. Again, the blue-haired man assumed a look of pure innocence. Unfortunately, it was about as transparent as glass. There was a spark somewhere deep within his cobalt eyes, causing Link's eye to twitch slightly in irritation. It didn't help that Falcon hadn't yet dimmed the lights.

For a moment, his chest tightened, almost to the point where he couldn't draw breath at all. He felt his pulse race as adrenaline roared through his veins, just like it had on his first day on the job. For a moment, he desperately considered running away. He had about five seconds left, right? That should be plenty of time to run out the door and maybe grab a Starbucks. Caffeine would calm him down, right? Caffeine and a little bit of cake, maybe?

Soon enough, the familiar news station jingle began. Ike activated his camera and pointed it straight at the news anchors. Doug jumped on another one and kept it on standby, ready to zoom into Link's face at just the right moment. Their third cameraman, Roy, aimed his at Zelda's face and grinned. In his hyperactive state, Link could've sworn that the camera was aimed a little _too_ low to catch her face. Then, he watched as Zelda's eyes flickered towards Marth, who gave her a thumbs up.

"Hello and welcome to SBNC," she said, showing off her dazzling smile. "I'm Zelda Harkinan."

In an instant, his pulse slowed. His hands, which had been clenched the whole time, relaxed. He was in his prime now. This was where he belonged. "And I'm Link Gaiden, coming to you live from the SBNC studios in beautiful Hollywood, California."

"This just in," Zelda said, quickly reading the words coming up on the teleprompter in front of her. "We've had yet another supposed attack by our 'Rodeo Ghost'." she shuffled her papers around. "This time, the victim was Mister Fox McCloud, a retired air force pilot."

"Our reporter, Pit, is on the scene right now. Let's see what he has dug up to bring light on this strange situation," Link added. "Take it away, Pit."

Static.

"… Pit…?"

More static.

"Pit, this isn't funny. You're on live right now!"

More static.

"Doug, try getting into the feed on Pit's camera," Marth barked quietly. "Roy, try everything you can to contact him. Ike… just keep the camera on."

Zelda cleared her throat, her smile lacking luster quite considerably. "I'm sorry, we seem to be experiencing some technical difficulties. We'll be right back after this short commercial break."

As soon as the red light atop Ike's camera blinked off, Link was on his feet and charging towards the computer. He stopped for a moment, blinking at the assorted blinking lights and buttons that he could never make heads or tails of. Doug, undeterred by such technology, was typing furiously on the keyboard.

"Damn, what'd that guy do to his camera? I'm having trouble just getting past the security measures on that thing!" Doug grumbled.

"Security measures? That camera's a cheap piece of crap and everything it has ends up getting uploaded anyways," Ike groaned. "God, if Pit is really _this_ paranoid—"

"His phone's on," Roy called from another computer, "But I can't get a hold of him." he pressed his hand to his headset and kept speaking into the microphone. Though he was unaware of it, his voice rose in pitch with every mention of his friend's name. "Pit? Pit, pick up! Pit, please pick up! Pit? PIT?"

"Have ya tried texting him yet?" Ike asked.

"Too unprofessional, Ike," Zelda said. "Besides—"

"'Unprofessional'? Listen, lady, the guy's missing. At the very least just send him a text saying something along the lines of 'where r u?' he may or may not get it."

"Hang on, I'm getting something," Douglas said. "I had to hack _a lot_ just to get past the first layer of security on the damn thing, but I got through… but I might have erased a few things on it…"

"Well? What is it?" Link asked, practically shoving Doug out of the way. "Where is Pit?" he hit the "Enter" button on the keyboard.

The screen flared to life.


	2. Chapter 2

Play With Me

**A/N: I forgot to mention. This piece is my first horror story and my entry into Guessworks' contest.  
><strong>

**II. Mouth**

They could only see the lower part of its face.

It was smiling at them, showing its perfectly formed teeth. Such teeth were unnatural, abnormal to the point of almost nonexistence. No human being's teeth could ever be so perfectly square, so perfectly white. The tongue itself was red, like a dragon's tongue, the same color of its lips. Standing out against a background of deathly white, the ghastly lips seemed much to big for the thing's face.

Link's stomach churned, his blood freezing in his veins. For a moment, his fingers twitched towards the pocket knife that he always carried with him in his jacket pocket. As if sensing his movement, the mouth seemed to shift slightly towards him.

Its voice was like a spiders'. Sugary and eloquent, but lacking in music and life. It was tempting them into its web and they could only stare at its horrid image like flies to a lamp.

"Goody, goody! New friends! New friends to play with me!"

Its tongue lolled out as it spoke, sloshing every which way. It licked its lips briefly before smiling at them again, the two meaty pieces of flesh now moist with its saliva. "Friends, friends, friends…"

A slim hand slipped into his. Link looked at his wife for only a brief moment before forcing his attention back to the screen. The thing was giggling now, still repeating the word "friends". Its giggle was simpering and depressing, like one of a child who had lost their home.

Ike, glaring doubtfully at the screen, picked up a microphone and started speaking into it. "Alright, Pit, if this is your idea of a joke, it's lame as fuck. Do us all a favor and take off the damn mask or make-up or whatever that is."

"Pit?" an sorrowful note crept into its voice. "Pitty cakey poo? He was so mean… so mean, so mean… he wouldn't be my friend…"

"Pit, I'm serious here!" Ike snarled. "Cut the crap right now or I'll go over there and do it for you!"

The mouth closed, seeming to regard the tall man before it. Link shivered as it did this. He couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched. There was something all too unnatural about this thing. Pit wasn't the type of guy to do something like this. Surely there had to be a logical explanation.

Right?

"You're mean too…" the mouth said sadly. "You're mean just like Pitty cakey poo… he didn't play with me… he didn't want to be my friend…"

"Pit—"

"Pitty cakey poo not my friend… Pitty cakey icky wicky bicky poo not my friend…"

The lights within the office began to flicker. Marth jumped and nearly hit his head on one as this happened. The lights, the other computer screens, even their cell phones began to flicker. The one screen, Link noticed, that _didn't_ get put through this treatment was _that_ one.

The one with the mouth.

"Do you want to be my friend…?" it asked. The sugary sweet was gone, replaced by an edge that was sharper than a two-edged sword. It pierced Link's heart with an ice cold shaft, spreading the cold right down to his toes. "Does no one want to be my friend…?"

"LISTEN YOU!" Ike screamed. "IF YOU AIN'T PIT, THEN YOU HAVE BETTER NOT FUCKING DONE ANYTHING TO HIM, YOU HEAR ME? I SWEAR TO GOD, I AM GOING TO FUCK YOU UP SO BAD THAT—"

Connection terminated.


	3. Chapter 3

Play with Me

**III. Mary, Mary Quite Contrary**

Ike sighed, running a hand through his spiked hair. The others were lagging behind. They couldn't keep up with the brisk pace the athletic cameraman had set. He shook his head, disappointed at their lack of fitness.

After all, they had only sprinted for ten miles straight.

They had managed to track the camera to one of the more suave neighborhoods of town, one of the few that didn't have people dressed up as characters from video games and movies walking about. It was a rather curious sort of neighborhood, quite out of the way from the rest of the hustle and bustle of the Californian city. It was charming and quite quant, almost innocent, if a neighborhood could radiate such an aura. But as Ike slowly neared the place where they had tracked Pit's camera, he couldn't help but feel a strange sense of sinister intent as well.

Link was the first to reach him, the news anchor sweating quite a lot from their recent jog through the city. "Din sear you, Ike Greil! I swear to Farore, if you make us run like that again, I'll be sure you'll be the next guy walking around dressed up like Spider-Man out here!"

Ike paid him no heed, concentrating instead on an object on the ground. It didn't exactly take a rocket scientist to know what it was. Then again, the name "Pit" scrawled on its side in bright neon green marker was a given as well.

"Welp, looks like we've found our little damsel in distress' camera," the large man drawled.

"But no sign of Pit himself," Marth said quietly as he sauntered up to them. "How… odd…"

Ike saw Zelda glanced at the camera, before shifting her gaze elsewhere. Following her stare, it took all of his willpower to keep from shouting. There was a house before them, the kind that absolutely screamed "Do not enter". It was a simple wooden structure, but it was quite obvious that the place was decaying before their very eyes. Indeed, it wasn't enough that there were many visible patches of moss and fungus all over the walls but the stench wafting from the place was nearly unbearable as well. The sickening reek of rotting wood, spoiled food, and… flesh?

"You don't think…" Roy whispered, trembling at the very sight of the house. Although it was extremely hard for Ike to admit it, it had to be said that for a brief moment, the place had taken on the appearance of a gruesome, smiling face.

"That he went in?" Doug asked. "No way. Even Pit isn't that stupid." he thought a moment, then amended the statement. "Okay, Pit isn't that stupid… but he is that curious."

"… Well… what should we do?" Link asked. "It's not like we can just ditch Pit here… but I seriously don't like the looks of that house…"

"We don't have much choice now, do we?" Marth said quietly. "At our studio, we leave no man behind. If… if whatever was talking to us earlier has him, we have to find out where he is."

"I agree," Doug stated. "Pit's a good pal. It wouldn't be fair to leave the poor kid on his own with some nut out there wanting to 'play' with us."

"Seconded," Roy muttered, slapping the back of his neck. "The sooner we get him, the sooner these stupid bugs stop attacking me."

"Bugs?" Zelda asked, frowning.

"Yeah, bugs. You know, those little annoying things that fly around and bite ya?"

Marth nodded. "Alright, then here's the plan…"

Ike noticed another building in the distance as Marth spoke. It was off to the side of the house, so small that it was almost inconspicuous. It was a rather curious little thing made entirely of glass, but quite dirty as it was. Most of the glass panes that made up the roof had broken quite obviously long ago, allowing a great number of surprisingly green foliage to sprout through. For a moment, the young man could've sworn that he saw a movement from behind the dirt-caked glass. Without even waiting to tell the others what he had just seen, he turned and interrupted their conversation.

"I'm going to go check out that thing next to the house."

Five heads snapped up at his injection. Five pairs of eyes looked upon him with much concern.

"Don't give me those looks, guys. Listen, I've got this feeling that whatever we're looking for is either in this stupid house or somewhere near it. You guys can check out the house, okay? I'll just take a quick peek in that place and meet up with you lot before you know it."

Zelda, trembling, placed a hand on his shoulder. "Are you sure, Ike? Link and I can come with you, if you-"

A muscle twitched in the cameraman's jaw. "Zelda. I know I'm not big and beefy like Doug here, but believe it or not, I can handle myself. If anything happens, I'll holler. But seriously, gimme a call once there's a story about plants going rogue, a'ight?"

"Ike…" Marth began, only to be cut off by Ike's hand.

"Not another word, Lowell, otherwise I'm going to have to rip off that mouth of yours. Who knows? Maybe I can give it to our little friend," the larger man grimaced. "Anyways… seeya."

* * *

><p>The greenhouse, for being neglected for who knows how long, was surprisingly well kept and quite beautiful. Every single plant in the place seemed to glow with a life of its own, the air was perfumed by the sweet aroma of the many flowers within. As Ike stopped for a moment to admire a nearby rose pot, he couldn't help but remember a certain little poem that his mother had used to tell him.<p>

_Mary, Mary, quite contrary, how does your garden grow?_

He could already quite vividly imagine her face, violet hair flowing in the light breeze, as the two walked hand in hand through the garden. And when his sister, Mist, was born, she would join them as well. He passed through the greenhouse, his eyes occasionally looking up from the beauty about him to scan ahead for a sign of the young brunette they were searching for.

Or was he a blonde?

_With silverbells…_

The silverbells in here were lovely. Absolutely, positively lovely. If it weren't for the fact that those things were a bunch of plants, Ike could've sworn that they were made out of pure silver. For a moment, he considered reaching out and picking one. Mia would like them. She loved silver.

He shook his head. He had to concentrate on his mission. What was it again? It was finding that one kid.

What was his name?

_And cockleshells…_

What was a cocckleshell, he wondered? He couldn't help but wonder about so many things. Like why was he here? Why was this place so unfamiliar?

Why did he not want to leave?

The garden was so pretty. So very, very pretty…

And the smell… oh, the smell… if only the world could smell like this. He would be happy forever. He would perfectly be content to sit and play with the flowers forever. All for the sweet perfume… sweet perfume…

He saw a flash of silver in the corner of his eye. Excitement bubbled through him as he stood and turned towards it, a million thoughts running through his head. More silver bells? Roses? Daisies? A new flower?

With a grin wide enough to break his face, he opened his arms.

The silver bells were stained red.

_And pretty maids all in a row…_


	4. Chapter 4

Play with Me

**IV. Jack and Jill**

Roy was coughing.

That was the first thing that came to everyone's mind as soon as the door was closed. Sure, a large dust cloud was kicked up because of that, but it didn't take long for everyone to be intelligent and clear-minded enough to cover their mouths with their sleeves. But even with a cloth covering his mouth, Roy just kept coughing.

It was rather annoying.

"Dude, did you spontaneously develop some kind of allergy to dust bunnies or something?" Doug asked in disbelief. "I've never seen you so much as sneezed before!"

Marth watched as Roy clutched his chest and took a deep breath, only to collapse into another coughing fit. Link slapped the red-head on the back, hoping to dislodge whatever seemed to be stuck in his windpipe. Unfortunately, it only seemed to serve to worsen the fit.

"Ten seconds into this place and already one of us is out of the picture," Doug groaned. "At this rate, Pit could walk out of here at any moment and none of us would notice…"

Roy shot him a glare. "I… _cough_… can… _cough_… still… _cough, cough_…"

Zelda placed her soft, gentle hands upon the shoulders of the cameraman and led him to a chair, her face full of concern. Once Roy seemed more or less stabilized, Marth let his gaze wander around the room.

The place was quite tidy, almost completely devoid of cobwebs. Sure there was still the occasional web here and there, but it was nothing a good dusting couldn't fix. Most of the furniture around the room was rather… child-like in appearance. Despite the fact that there was little to no light, the colors of the furniture stood out quite severely. Marth was a homely man, who liked colors that at least matched a little. The horrid clashing of different shades of red, yellow, and green was too much to bear.

And Roy was _still_ coughing!

"Are you sure you're alright, Roy?" Link asked. "Because seriously, I think you should step—"

"No," Roy said harshly, somehow managing to keep his coughing fit down. "I'm- _cough -_ not abandon-_cough_-ing Pit!"

Doug threw up his hands. "Kid, just look at ya. You can barely stand!"

Anger flashed across Roy's face as he attempted to get to his feet. But the moment his shoes touched the floor, he paled considerably and collapsed back in his chair. And again, he continued to cough. For one horrid moment, Marth could've sworn that the tiniest flecks of blood were being spewed out of the young man's mouth. But that vision was soon lost in the uneasy light of the room.

It soon occurred to Marth that there was something unnatural about all of this. First Pit went missing, then that strange… creature appeared, and now this. Roy had been healthy as a bull only that morning, strutting around the news station like he owned the place and somehow managing to put a smile on even Ike's face. And in just the shortest amount of time, he had been reduced to a wheezing, coughing, pitiful creature.

Was it the bugs? Marth vaguely remembered Roy saying something about bugs before they entered the house. He had been complaining about them, grumbling about how they seemed to only want to attack him.

But he could've sworn there had been no bugs around…

"He needs water," Zelda said quietly. "At the very least, we should try to clear his throat."

Doug nodded. "Marth and I'll go get it. In the meantime, Link, you try to get a lead on whatever the Hell is going on, a'ight?"

For a moment, hesitation flashed behind the news anchor's deep blue eyes. Then again, Marth didn't blame him. It was one thing to enter a strange house with a small group of people, but another thing entirely when you had to wander the place alone.

But out of all the people assembled in the room, there was no doubt that Link was the most likely to survive. Sure, he didn't have the muscle power that Douglas and Ike had, but he was a resourceful young man and knew how to keep his head in a fight.

"Shall we get going, Lowell?" Doug asked, "Or do you want to wait until Roy here starts sprouting flowers out his nose as well?"

Marth rolled his eyes. "Very amusing, Doug." he followed the larger man down a hall and towards the nearest door, which he assumed led to the kitchen. For a moment, the atmosphere in the room seemed to change for him. There was a sense of eagerness and goading, as if the house was mocking them for reasons unknown. Marth shivered, his eyes darting every which way. There seemed to be a new presence in the room now. One of sinister, malicious intent. But it was not long until such a presence faded and he was once again simply strolling down a hall with one of his long-time friends.

As he passed a dresser, he couldn't help but notice a rather peculiar item on top of it: a pail. It was the atypical child's pail, colored bright red and made of cheap plastic. Much to Marth's amazement, the thing looked brand new, as if it had been bought in a store not to long ago. Not a single grain of dust or dirt had touched it.

It was almost unnatural.

Then, he couldn't help but notice there was a particular painting on the wall above the place where he found the bucket. It was a portrait of two people- a boy and a girl- standing hand in hand. The boy's face was faded away to the point where his features could not be seen. But the girl… oh, the girl…

She was glorious. Her face was heart-shaped, her lips were full, her hair the color of sapphires… Marth had known someone that looked almost exactly like her a long time ago. Her name had been Caeda and she had been a wonderful, wonderful person. Warmth flooded the young man's face as he thought of the young woman he had met in college. He knew she still lived in the city. Perhaps later he would ask her to dance…

Vaguely, he noticed that the boy was holding a bright red pail, not unlike the one he was holding now. Atop the place where the boy's head would be was a golden crown.

Something stirred in his memory of a scene like this. A poem, perhaps, or a little nursery rhyme. It had been one of his favorites when he was younger. A sweet little story about two sweet little children…

How did it go again?

"Nothing," Doug said disgustedly as he closed a door shut. "Nothing in that one except a bunch of crayons and paper." he shook his head. "This place is seriously giving me the creeps. What kind of idiot would keep a bunch of crayons and paper in a single room?"

Marth did not answer, for he was much too busy staring at the pail. For some strange reason, he had a feeling that they were quite near their destination. What was it again?

Oh right, the kitchen.

The tug in his gut pulled him towards a set of stairs, the wooden floor beneath him moaning with his every step. Distantly, he heard Doug say something to him, but there seemed to be something stuck in his ear.

Whatever it was, it was blocking Doug's voice.

"The kitchen is up these stairs, Doug," he said dreamily. "I can feel it…"

"Marth… I seriously doubt that there's a full-on kitchen _upstairs_," Doug said bluntly. "And dude, where the Hell did you get that pail?"

"Do you remember the song, Doug?" Marth asked, closing his eyes and conjuring up Caeda's smiling face. "Do you remember the song…?"

"Song? Uh… I remember a lotta songs, man. But if you want me to sing one, you're going to have to stop being freaky."

"I remember it…" Marth whispered. "I remember…" he started humming softly as he mounted the stairs, happily ignoring the creaking of the aged wood as he went. And for a moment, he could've sworn that someone was humming along with him.

_Jack and Jill went up the hill to fetch a pail of water…_

"Uh… okay, you want a song? How about this one? There's a stranger in my bed, there's a pounding in my head! Glitter all over the room, pink flamingos in the pool!"

Marth continued humming, thinking only of his dear, sweet Caeda. He skipped one step, two, three. But they weren't steps anymore. No… he was on a hill. A beautiful, smooth hill. He was walking hand in hand with Caeda... his sister's tiara was on his head…

"Okay, don't like that one? How about BABY! BABY! BABY, OHHHH!"

"Come on, Doug…" Marth murmured. "We have to fetch Roy a pail of water…"

A creak behind him. A step. A groan.

"Marth, get your ass down here THIS INSTANT!" Doug barked. "Don't make me go up there and get you!"

There were only a few more steps until the top. About five at the most. Marth had never leaped five steps before. But if Ike could do it, he could do it. Smiling, he pressed all of his weight into the step he was on…

_Jack fell down and broke his crown…_

Something happened. As he made the leap, something happened. Something hit him square in the head, smashing his skull wide open. A red curtain covered his eyes.

He tumbled backwards.

He hit his head on a step…

Another…

Another…

Doug was shouting.

He slammed to the ground, his vision blurring. There were black lines everywhere. They were mocking him. They would close in, then back away.

He heard Caeda calling to him.

Marth!

Marth!

Marth!

There was something in his chest. Something ice cold, shiny. He could see the shiny through the red.

Caeda liked shiny things.

Was Doug coming towards him? Something seemed wrong too. Doug was a big man. And big man meant big shape.

Big shape was coming too close.

Big shape had shiny too.

Shiny, shiny, shiny…

_And Jill came tumbling after…_


	5. Chapter 5

Play with Me

**V. Ring Around the Rosie**

He was a mess.

Here he was, sitting in a little chair, coughing up his little lungs. He knew he was the smallest of the group- Hell, Marth was taller than him- but that didn't mean they could leave him like this. He was suffering. He wanted water.

He wanted it now.

Distantly, he heard a crash, then a cry of pain. The tall, slender woman who had been at his side this whole time left. She left him all alone, all alone in his suffering. Perhaps they, his so-called friends, were mocking him. Perhaps they were planning something to get rid of him. Perhaps he and Pit had done or said something they didn't like.

Perhaps, perhaps, perhaps…

He was itchy. He was scratchy. His every muscle hurt like the Devil. He wanted to scream, to run, to summon the will to end this madness once and for all.

But all he could do was sit there.

He soon became aware of a strange formation upon his neck. He wasn't sure what had caused him to become aware of it. Perhaps it was the fact that his neck had suddenly felt quite moist, or the disgusting yellow pus that oozed down his arm. He reached up and touched the spot, feeling a lump that hadn't been there before. He prodded it, gasping as pain shot through the spot.

More pus oozed.

And now his hand, where the itch had seemed to decide to settle. He removed his hand, still caked in pus, from the lump to examine it. It was glowing red hot, arranged in a formation of a rose-colored ring right in the center of his palm.

He was turning into a monster.

There had to be a way to make him feel better. He stood up quickly, hoping that by keeping his muscles moving, the pain would go away. But a wave of dizziness soon hit him.

He vomited.

That's strange… he didn't remember eating anything colored red that morning.

More pain shot through him, more pus leaked down his arm. But another lump had appeared. Two lumps, to be exact. One under each arm. He felt them under his sleeves, squeezing them, allowing the pus to stain his shirt. And it was not long before he felt pain in his most tender spot.

Pus leaked down his leg.

The pus was his friend now. He loved the pus. The pus and the lumps stayed with him when nobody else would. He hugged himself and vomited once again.

A rose-colored substance.

Perhaps, he thought, he was delirious. Well, he could go ahead and continue being delirious. The others wouldn't care. The others didn't matter. All that matter was the pus and the lumps. They would never abandon him. They would never cause him too much pain…

Someone was singing. Someone was singing and laughing. He loved singing and laughing. He wanted to sing and laugh along with them. He opened his eyes wider.

And he saw children. Boys in cloth caps. Girls in snow white dresses. All danced around him, hand in hand. In front of him, where he could've sworn he had vomited before, was a rosebush. Each flower upon this sacred plant was more beautiful than any he had ever seen.

The children smiled at him. Then they made room in their ever moving circle. They wanted him to join them. They wanted him to play.

And gladly he did.

He took their hands and skipped with them around the lovely little rose-bush, singing with them their adorable little song.

_Ring around the rosie…_

The roses were beautiful. They reminded him of something. Of a girl, perhaps. Or of another place.

But was there another place?

No, there couldn't be. He had always been here. He was content to be here.

He belonged here.

_A pocket full of posie…_

Posies… those were herbs. They had been used long ago in an attempt to cure some kind of disease. What was it called again? Malaria? Yellow Fever? The Common Cold?

The Black Death?

_Ashes, ashes…_

It began snowing. Oh, glorious snow! Roy gasped as he looked around, never letting go of the children's hands. It never snowed in California!

He poked out his tongue to taste a snowflake. But he soon spat it out. Snow tasted nothing like water or ice! Truly, the flavor was disgusting!

Just like burnt wood…

The circle was going faster around the rosebush now. The children's faces were all but a blur. He knew the best part was coming. The part when they would be one with the grass below their feet and laugh and laugh and laugh. They could share his lumps and his pus with him.

They didn't seem to mind.

Wait a minute, why was he having trouble breathing?

Why was his vision spinning?

Why did he hurt so much?

Why…

_We all fall down…_


	6. Chapter 6

Play with Me

**A/N: Final chapter!**

**VI. Play with Me**

Link gripped the candlestick he held tighter as he ventured into yet another room. For a moment, he got into a fighting pose, ready to strike the head of anyone who dared try to attack him. But the only thing in this particular room that moved at all was a lone white curtain.

Damn.

There were only two floors to the house, but what seemed like millions and millions of rooms. Each of these rooms held an accessory of some kind that would be attributed to a child. There was a rocking horse in the bathroom, a doll house in the dining room, a model rocket in the living room…

It was curious how child-like this house truly was. Even the wallpaper job in this place was rather young for an adult. Why, most of the walls had dancing lions and monkeys all around! Their eyes always seemed to follow Link around, causing the news anchor to look over his shoulder every so often to be sure he was not being followed.

He backed out of the curtain room and closed the door, his eyes darting to and fro. The hallway he was in seemed ordinary enough. After all, what fear could be reaped from a bunch of paper with lions and monkeys?

Suddenly, there was a shuffle. And then a sob. Gritting his teeth, Link whirled in a circle, swinging the candlestick like a sword. But as soon as he made a complete turn, it soon became evident that there was no other presence in this place but him. Well, him and the others, but still.

Then he noticed the door.

He didn't remember there being anything at the end of the hall. One moment, he had been nothing more than a blank wall. But where he could've sworn a blank wall had been was now a lone door. It was about the size of the average door and painted a brilliant yellow. It hurt his eyes to look at it.

Treading carefully, he made his way towards it.

The closer he got, the louder the sobbing became. It broke his heart to hear it. The sobbing was like that of a lost soul, a child who could not go on. It made him want to sit down and weep as well.

No!

He shook his head, clearing all thought of pity. Whoever-whatever- was in there had done something to his friend Pit. No matter how pitiful it was, how utterly pathetic the thing seemed, there was something abnormal about it. And he was going to put an end to this ridiculous game once and for all!

With a cry that shook the heavens, he charged at the door and slammed his foot into it. It splintered under the weight of his powerful leg and clattered to the floor. And finally, the young news anchor was able to see what was beyond the yellow door.

He saw a young man, barely older than a boy, sitting on the floor. He was wearing a toga of white. Strange appendices- wings?- were taped to his back. His back was to the blonde and he was sobbing. Every sob wracked his body, growing in volume with each shudder.

He saw toys on the floor. Broken toys, mostly. There were some wooden dolls, some toy cars, and even a rubber ducky that had lost its head. Again, Link felt the need to bend down and sob along with the poor, unfortunate soul.

But something had to be done.

"Hey kid!" he said, never lowering his candlestick. "Kid!"

The sobbing stopped. The boy on the floor straightened, revealing his messy mop of brown hair to Link for the first time. The instant he saw the hair, there was no need for Link to know any further who it was.

"… Pit…?" he whispered weakly, watching as his old friend slowly stood up and turned around.

A true horror met him. Eyes, colored black with irises of blood red, glared back at him with malicious intent. A smile, with lips red as a dragon's tongue, stretched itself across his co-worker's face, almost ripping his face in half. His teeth were all perfectly square and so very white. Too abnormally perfect to be of this world.

"Link!" he-it-Pit-the thing squealed. "Linky, Linky, Linky-poo! I knew you'd come! You want to play with me!"

"What… the… fuck…" Link whispered weakly, the candlestick shaking in his hands. "W-Who… who are you…?"

"I'm Pitty Cake, Linky Winky Poo," Pit's-it's- tongue flicked its way in between his teeth. It was forked, like the Devil's tail. "Play with me?"

Link swallowed. Surely this had to be a joke. "You're kidding me, right? C'mon, we gotta get you outta here!" he reached for Pit's arm. "Have you seen the others?"

Pit's smile widened at Link's touch, revealing strings of… flesh?, between his teeth. "They wouldn't play with me, Link… they wouldn't play… they were so mean…" he took a step closer, wrapping his arm around Link's waist in an iron grip. The other man struggled against him, but fell weak to his strength.

This was not Pit. Pit had never, ever been this strong.

"I want you to play with me, Link…" Pit whispered, leaning in closer. Link could smell the coppery reek of blood in his breath. "Best friends forever…"

Link gritted his teeth and yanked himself away, stomping on the pseudo-angel's foot. He made extra sure to drive his heel right on top of the arch of his foe's right foot. A flash of pain in Pit's face was quickly followed by anger.

"You… you're mean…" he whispered, his face darkening with each word. "You're mean… you're just like the others… just like the others…"

The wind picked up. There was no window open or anything, but the wind picked up. Link knew then and there that this was not normal. This wind was too powerful to be normal. This _house_ was too creepy to be normal.

Pit rose into the air, suspended by perhaps invisible strings. His face took on a blood-red glow, his eyes flashing ruby as he glared at the man. When he spoke, his voice was unlike anything ever heard. It was a combination of a tortured scream, nails upon a blackboard, and a deep, ancient evil.

"You won't play with me… maybe Zelda will play…" he licked his lips with his horrid forked tongue, his smile widening all the more. "Zelda would love to play… pretty, pretty Zelda… playing with me forever…"

Zelda…

"N-No…" Link whispered. "You… whatever you are… LEAVE MY FRIEND PIT ALONE!" he raised the candlestick and charged.

Only to be thrown back immediately. Invisible chains wound around him, pinning him to the floor. Link tried to cry out, only to have the same chains encircle his mouth before he could get out a sound. He struggled against these, these horrid invisible chains, but all of it was for naught. Pit was floating towards him now, leaning down on him, smiling at him…

"I know better, Link Pinky Winky Poo…" he whispered. "You want Zelda all to yourself, hm? You want to play with Zelda forever…" his fingers found Link's unusually pointed ear, tracing down his face to his jaw to his collarbone. "I'm not mean, Linky… I'm nice… I'm so very nice…" he grabbed Link's face, despite the young man's struggles, and brought it close to his own. "You want to play with Zellie forever… and ever… and ever…"

Link summoned the last of his strength and aimed for Pit's crotch. His leg struck home. The pseudo-angel winced in pain, but only for a second. His eyes flashed an even deeper red.

They were swallowing him now. He was falling down a deep, bottomless pit. The only light he was given were a pair of twin rubies.

They were his friends.

They promised they'd help.

_Play… play… play…_

The words echoed within his head. He tried to push them away.

_Play… play… play…_

He felt something enter his mouth. It oozed down his throat, into his stomach. But it didn't stop there. It flowed through his veins, his arteries, his heart. It began gently caressing his memories, his hatred…

His obsessions…

He pushed harder.

_Play…_

You know what? Maybe playing wasn't so bad after all.

_Play…_

He could have fun forever. Be with Zelda forever. That's what he wanted.

_Play…_

No more work, no more worries. Just him and Zelda, together forever…

_Play…_

He smiled. Yes. He wanted to play. He wanted to play…

He opened his eyes. There was a boy with brown hair lying on the floor. He prodded him with a toe.

He didn't move.

There were others in this house too. Other people were fun to play with. He'd like to have someone to play with.

He went downstairs.

He saw the woman.

She was crying.

"Zelda…" he whispered, the name rolling easily off his tongue. The woman looked up immediately, periwinkle eyes meeting his own. She stood there for a moment, her mouth agape, her eyes wide.

Then she ran to him.

"LINK! MARTH AND DOUG! AND ROY! AND IKE! THEY'RE—"

She had tears. It wouldn't do for her to be sad. Being sad ruined playtime.

"Zelda…"

"Link, please, was must—"

"Zelda…"

"Link, there's no time! We—"

"Zelda…"

"ARGH! WHAT?"

"Play with me…"


End file.
